The Ties That Bind
by soulioli
Summary: Carine Arrowsmith transfers to Ouran Academy in her second year to run away. It's rare to get a transfer student, let alone one that's a commoner. What will happen when she reveals, perhaps by accident, that she's more than she seems? [OC/?]
1. Carine

The gigantic, pink walls towered over the young girl, causing her to adjust her glasses carefully as she began to walk.

Yellow and blue swirled around the main gates, dancing to some sort of complicated rhythm that would surely make for a good scene description or poem. If only she could be able to place it. Her chin was held high, though that was the only thing about her mannerisms that suggested she wasn't natively Japanese. She walked with the same type of bag, the same polite nature, the same sense of intelligence.

Though, she thought, perhaps that trait wasn't as common in the women over where she had found herself….

She continued to walk as people turned and whispered, talking about her. It wasn't uncommon, she told herself. She was something of an enigma.

" _Do you see her?"_

" _Yeah, is that the new transfer student?"_

" _She looks so….odd."_

" _What is another commoner doing here?"_

" _Should I even ask her name?"_

To that, she had answers.

Yes, she was quite aware that she had transferred from her home in America. Why was she here? Well, if you had asked her, she would probably laugh and touch the gems at her throat, saying that she wanted to experience the culture. If you were looking for more, a wry smile would come your way. " _Better that some things are left unsaid, yes _-san?"_

Yes, she was still getting used to the suffixes. Yes, she knew she was odd. Everyone else here had on the same uniform. The girls had natural hair and perfectly slanted eyes, with pale skin and rosy undertones. All of them were docile and absolutely hung on the affection of men. Never women, though. Loathe as she were to admit it, Japan did not have any good policies toward their LGBTQ+ community.

That wasn't to say America had been the best, either, as each country had their upsides and downsides, but….oh, who was she kidding? Politics and political correctness made her head spin. Having to justify singular comments was tedious. Why couldn't she just say what she needed to say and be done with it?

Er, anyway….she was a different story. She was built wide, with curves that were sometimes in the right spot, sometimes not. Her bust filled out, but no such luck with her hips, and, well…..she was…..fat. Some would say chubby, but when describing herself, fat had always seemed like a better descriptor.

 _Especially when you've been called fat so many times. Truth hurts, doesn't it?_

She bit back a frown at her own snark, reminding herself that these people can't throw anything at her that she hadn't seen before. Keeping her eyes fixed on the space in front of her, she went back to describing herself, allowing her feet to lead her where she needed to go. It was a nice coping mechanism, at the least.

Her friends would call her pretty, perhaps anyone would, actually. She wasn't sure. Her face was round, and yes, if she looked down, she had a double chin. However, her eyes were a nice, calming shade of blue, like the sky after a storm. She'd always taken a liking to her eyes, even if nothing else. Her hair, which had been pulled into a tight bun - do you _know_ how long it takes with thick hair? - was a shade of honey brown that no one could quite place until they'd seen it in person, interwoven with a red tint at the end.

That was courtesy of Kool-Aid in her sixth-grade year, and she'd really kept it ever since.

Though she was no true Ouran student - she was here on a scholarship, after all - she _was_ dressed as nicely as she could. A white blouse was tucked into a pair of navy blue slacks, meeting somewhere near her torso's midsection. Said blouse was a button-up and had a nice collar. She'd considered a tie but thought that would be a little too much, because of, well….femininity. A pair of white, lacy flats finished her outfit, along with a gem necklace hidden carefully under her shirt.

Her name was Carine Arrowsmith. She was a second-year transfer, in class 2-A. And she was going to be fine. She was going to carve out a life for herself. No one was going to break her. She was going to be _fine._

Her feet had led her to the receptionist's office after their drumming on the ground, and she quickly bowed, introducing herself politely and being led to her classroom. The teacher waited outside, and she was quick to make a good impression on him as well. Carine had the feeling that she would need it later down the line, and she'd long since learned to trust her gut.

The bell rang, and with it came the time for introductions. Letting out a deep breath, Carine did what she did when she had to go onstage.

She let herself slip into character.

The smile on her face was polite, yet it showed none of her teeth. She wrote her name on the board with care, making sure that the strokes of her kanji were nothing less than perfect. Everything had to be _perfect._

She bowed deeply to the class, a clear sign of submission, though her skin was prickling at the thought of submitting to these….rich people.

"My name is Arrowsmith, Carine. It is a pleasure to meet all of you, and I do hope that we have a nice year as classmates and comrades."

Her voice was smooth, even. Elegant. Just as she'd practiced this morning. Her heart raced at a mile a minute, but she stood up, noting the whispers starting to sprout.

" _The commoner looks kind of nice, don't you think? Even though she's….like that."_

" _Is she really American? You can't get that good at Japanese overnight."_

" _Doesn't matter to me. She's lower than I am, so I don't really need to associate with her."_

" _She kinda seems like a bitch, though….like she's all fake."_

" _Maybe we should ask her about America! Is it really like in the movies, Koko-chan?"_

Still, the smile hadn't twitched. Though she was a student, Carine was also a showman, through and through. Her teacher gave a somewhat impressed smile at her mannerisms, directing her to her seat.

It was right behind a rather odd looking duo. They were a bit like night and day. One was blonde, with violet eyes, and seemed to hone in on her rather intently. The other had raven hair and eyes obscured by glasses. He, like the majority of people, were paying her no attention as she walked to her seat.

 _Oof….alright. That's the first time down._ She thought, taking out her things for notes.

Class seemed to fly by, and although her ability to read Japanese and process what she was hearing at the same time was shaky, Carine knew what the teacher had been going over. Review of their syllabus from yesterday and a start on the material, it seemed. Good, it _was_ only the second day, but she expected nothing less.

As the bell rang and teachers packed their things to get to their next room, students began to chatter, some even leaving the room to use the restroom or do god-knows-what-else. Before she could get up to stretch, however, a red rose was shoved in her face.

She slowly blinked. Then once more. Apparently, something had been said, and her eyes shifted their focus from the petals of the rose to the person behind them. It was the blonde from earlier who had been watching, except for now, he continued to do so. Charm rolled off of him in waves.

Why was he paying attention to her again? Distantly, she heard him say something but froze. However, she couldn't play stiff forever….not if she wanted to impress everyone. She worked her features into a polite expression despite the heat that had involuntarily taken over her cheeks, and tried again, gently taking the rose from where it was between his fingers. "Pardon me?"

In a way, he reminded her of a golden retriever as he spoke, words carefully laced with charm as he kissed the back of her hand. "I was just asking what Ouran did to be granted with a beautiful rose such as yourself, miss."

She could feel the flush grow on her face. Oh, god. Why did her inner romantic have to come out _now?_ And why did this guy want to flirt with _her?_ Had someone paid him off? Was this just some kind of elaborate prank?

A semi-genuine smile grew on her face at the compliment even still as she replied smoothly. "Oh, there's no need to go that far, but thank you. I think the true blessing to Ouran is yourself."

His face colored somewhat, though his eyes betrayed him. Confusion, shock, and…..amusement? Did no one ever flirt back? Oh, was that also a custom she hadn't read up on? Realistically, the girls were probably too enamored to even keep their wits about them. But Carine needed control, and there was no better way to give a character control than to turn the tables.

Sort of like…..Phoenix Wright. The Turnabout Terror. Her inner self let out a sigh - she really did want to play those games again soon.

"Arrowsmith-hime, you don't need to waste your words like that, because we both know that your beauty and excellence holds no bounds."

Shit, he was good, wasn't he? Distantly, she thought it sounded like something a manga character would be inclined to say. How cute. After a moment, a retort formed.

"While I can't say that I know your name, I can assure you that your kindness and handsome nature is something I won't ever be able to beat. In fact, you are more fitting of this rose than me." The rose was extended back to him, and he did genuinely seem shocked this time, even on the surface. A smile rose to her face.

"Souh, Tamaki." He said in response, taking it from her grasp.

"Pardon me?"

"My name." He said, glancing to her. Carine resisted the urge to slap her own forehead. Of course. Duh. She did no such thing, however, instead keeping herself poised.

"Well, Souh-san….it was nice talking with you. Though perhaps we could do without the flirting next time, seeing as how I beat you." She taunted, heart racing at the gamble she was taking. On one hand, he could be extremely offended that she was taunting him, but on the other….maybe he had respect for her.

Something close to anticipation seemed to run through his expression. "I happen to think that you got lucky."

She looked down. "Hm, if only that would happen more often."

Carine was rewarded with a quiet chuckle at that, and he turned around. His seatmate seemed to take a newfound interest in her, however, studying her. His eyes were gray, but they were calculating. Slow.

….Was _he_ offended now? The other guy didn't seem to be, but then again, they were quite close - oooh, saucy - and might have gotten offended on his friend's behalf.

Funny. When she'd said that to the team last year, they just laughed, but she wasn't putting it past Japan to have that be an actual thing.

He said nothing, only placing a card on her desk. She quirked her eyebrows but nodded at him. He nodded back and turned around, leaving her to turn the card over in her fingers. Upon reading the text, a pit settled in her stomach. The kanji was perfect, but the message left something to be desired in terms of connotations.

 _Come to Music Room 3 after school. We think you could fit in nicely with our club._

* * *

Carine rolled her shoulders as she stood in front of the doors to the third music room. She'd been hearing whispers all day; some had seen her scene with the blonde - Tamaki, she mentally corrected herself - and liked it, while others seemed to skirt around her. For what reason, she couldn't tell, but all she'd been hearing was the phrase "host club." Carine figured it was just an exaggeration, though.

These girls were too dramatic for it to be anything else. Right?

Either way, the one time she asked about it, the girls had skirted around the topic and giggled, telling her that she'd just have to go see it for herself.

The overweight girl pushed the doors open, thinking to herself. She did always like the phrase "skirted." She could probably make some fantasy use out of that - maybe enchanted skirts? Oh, or a dystopia where women were the ones in power and -

Her thoughts promptly stopped, however, when a swirl of petals came from the door, along with seven voices.

" _Welcome!"_

* * *

 **A/N:** **Woah, it's wild to fall back into this fandom!**

 **Don't get me wrong, I don't think I ever left. But, I was also on an Ace Attorney binge until earlier this week, so what is there to do except insert my OC's in *everything?***

 **Kidding, kidding. I do happen to hold a certain fondness for Carine's character, though, and I really hope I'm doing her justice. I wonder what will happen next? What's this proposition of theirs?**

 **Thank you for reading, and if you enjoyed, Kudos, Bookmarks, and some comments are highly appreciated!**


	2. The Host Club (Ep 1)

**Review Responses:**

 **RavynLex:** Thank you! I'm also fluffy, so I'm happy to give more representation in a fandom where the OC's are mostly body-confident (from what I've read, at least.) Her sarcasm will get her into trouble later, I'd bet.

* * *

If Carine had been someone who gaped, she would be choking right now, she was sure of it.

Instead, a heavily perfume-scented cloud came from the room, causing her to sneeze. Once she was done sneezing, though, she opened her eyes, doing her best not to make a face as she dabbed at her nose.

Being in here was already causing several different aspects of her to come out. Though she could be serious and mature when the occasion called, there was no harm in playing devil's advocate, now was there? And certainly no harm in letting out some of her excess….energy in the form of yelling and being hyper. Her natural state called for sarcastic remarks and over the top faces, but there wasn't any room for that here - which, to finish lamely, sucked.

She supposed she'd have to settle for mental sarcasm.

In any case, she began to survey the room. It was empty, save for the tables and chairs with the people in front of her, and she made an effort not to let her eyebrows rise as a result.

What was going on here? Who were these people?

She made it a point to look each one of them in the eye, trying to get a good read on all of them. If this was the so-called "club" that she would fit in with….it needed to be filled with good people.

 _Remember. There's nothing selfish about looking out for yourself. If I need to get out of here, I can and I will. No one will hurt me again._ She thought. _I'm fine. I can do this._

The first one she made eye contact with was the taller blonde in the room - her classmate. A smile bloomed it's way onto her face as she nodded to him, already having a good read on him. Next to him was her other classmate, the one with the black hair who's name she had never caught. As soon as it came, he'd shaken the contact off, pushing his glasses off in a way that suggested he may have been uncomfortable.

 _Interesting. Hmmm…_

Next to him was a taller guy, who Carine could only think to describe as "buff." He was muscular, tall, and quiet. They locked eyes, and though his face was blank, his eyes were a different story. Many things flashed and swirled around in their depths, so quick that it almost made her dizzy.

Her eyes quickly retreated, though not without a twitch of the lip to form a wider smile. Next, blue clashed with brown as she glanced at him. He was short and seemed sweet in that loli sort of way, though she was surprised to meet someone shorter than her. River would have a field day with this. It wasn't as though he was completely innocent, however, as he seemed to watch her with curiosity and a certain gleam to him that suggested he was secretly mischievous. Now that was even more interesting.

A pair of twins were the next that her eyes landed on, clamping down the eyebrow that threatened to rise. Both of them had ginger hair and amber eyes. They regarded her much like her cats did - curiosity that wasn't necessarily caring. If Carine were being honest, she wasn't that fond of them already. One, because it looked like they were about to hunt her down, and two, because they didn't seem like the nicest. Silently, she thought to stay away from them.

And the last…..

 _Huh._ She blinked. _Looks like we've got a new winner for "things I'm the most interested to find out about."_

In front of her was a girl, but a girl dressed in the male uniform. If she weren't looking closely, and if she hadn't made friends that were transitioning, she wouldn't notice, but it was there. Her face was too plump, the way she stood was too independently feminine, and….while she didn't exactly radiate femininity, it was there. And she was pretty. Or, charming, if they - she mentally scolded herself for assuming - identified as a man. She would need to check later.

Her mind was working at a pace that was quickly approaching mach speed, though their silence only lasted a minute before the twins broke it. "What's this? Another commoner?"

Carine snapped herself out of it, mentally hopping around on one foot and hitting herself with the other. "Oh, my apologies! Not all of you know me." She bowed to them fluidly, then stood up, shoulders straightened. "I'm Arrowsmith, Carine. I'm apart of class 2-A. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintances."

The twins shared a look, one that she assumed meant trouble was in the making. Then, they turned towards her with equally mischievous grins, causing her smile to tighten only slightly.

"Hikaru, Kaoru. I trust that you'll behave yourselves while Tamaki and I tend to something with the young lady here, yes?"

The twins seemed to almost pout at the comment but didn't seem the type to go against someone as….demanding as the raven-haired boy. Instead, they just went with it, going off to bother the brown-haired host(? Were they hosts?)

Meanwhile, she'd been led to a table in the back where the two club representatives sat across from her. It wasn't long before the club had gathered around them, causing Carine to rub her palms on her thighs to calm herself down. It wasn't as if anything bad was going to happen…..right?

Right.

The boy with the glasses seemed to be a little annoyed but said nothing as he adjusted them, gesturing for Tamaki to begin.

He took her hand in his own and did, causing her to suppress a frown and think about her next move. Should she pull back? Blend in? Or keep doing what she did earlier…? Oh, god...she'd fucked up earlier, hadn't she? And now they wanted to see her because she had done awful, and -

"Princess, we would like for you to join the club."

She blinked, gently taking her hand from the more touchy-feely boy's. "Come again?"

His classmate sighed, looking at her directly. "Tamaki thinks it would be a good idea for you to join the club. While he and I have….talked," he said the word as if it displeased him, "and he thinks that you would better fit other positions, we both came to the agreement that you can and will - if you would like to - make a nice waitress. Of course, you would be volunteering yourself to the task, but Tamaki sees no harm in giving you a share of the profits."

Without thinking, she said, "So, you want me to be the maid of your whorehouse because I'm poor?"

The boy with the glasses rose an eyebrow, and she clamped a hand over her mouth. "Oh, that - that came out really wrong, didn't it?"

The twins were laughing it up in the back, slowly causing the typically put-together blonde to crumble into dust in the background. "I - I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to assume…." She was stumbling, and rapidly growing more frustrated with herself.

"Don't worry, Smithy-chan! We aren't that kind of club!" The short blonde giggled.

 _Smithy-chan?_ She wondered.

"I, um….in any case….I would like the position of waitress if you're willing to offer it. Whatever you guys need, I can provide." Carine said, giving a tentative smile. From his corner, Tamaki brightened right back up.

 _Though, I'm not quite sure why you want me. I mean….all I did was flirt with your leader a little._

She glanced to Tamaki, who was caught between goofing around and trying to pick her apart. Her lips stretched upwards.

… _..Well, he is a little thick in the head. And I wouldn't put it past anyone to want to keep an eye on me. Nationalism is one hell of a thing, isn't it?_

The raven-haired boy pushed up his glasses to cover his eyes, and at that moment, she got distracted. His method was different than hers, a single finger on the bridge of the nose to push up the center in a fluid movement. To adjust her own, it was typically a matter of touching the top of the frame and the bottom and pushing upwards to adjust them. Though she supposed that was a personal preference, maybe it would make for a good character quirk? Maybe for something like the basis of a story, oh - or maybe -

"You'll be subjected to a trial period, in which we will decide if you are a good fit for the club."

She was snapped out of her thought spiral by him speaking again and the girl nodded as if she had been mentally present the whole time. "Of course. I'm grateful to have this opportunity."

 _Though it does seem a bit rushed…..I wonder if there's a reason for that?_

"Fantastic, _ma cherie!_ We'll start you tomorrow!"

Carine perked up. Tamaki spoke French? That would help her conversational skills a lot when she needed practice. Especially now that she was learning - ugh - Spanish.

"Would you like me to stay and observe for today, then?" She blinked, a genuine smile blossoming on her face.

"That would be beneficial."

* * *

Sure enough, the host club was in full swing once again today. Carine's eyes skipped from table to table as she sat all by her lonesome, somewhat thankful for the chaos around her. Hmm, maybe she should send something to Theseus and Wren one day….they would be sure to capture the host club in a song.

It was too interesting to pass up.

She watched them, her favorite table to watch being the trans (?) boy's table, and the table of the two upperclassmen.

She supposed that Ootori's table was nice - if you liked being lied to, that was.

Similarly, Tamaki's table was interesting but didn't appeal to her personally. It was more for girls who needed to be focused on. Carine liked attention, but not that much attention.

And the twins…..the transfer had to stare down into her teacup, filled with some sort of "commoner's coffee" that she had made sweeter for herself.

This was all well and good, of course, until the brown-haired boy stopped by her table, pausing at the way she was staring into her cup.

"Are you okay?" They asked, seeming only slightly put-out.

Carine nodded but gave a stiff smile. "Oh, yeah. You, um, know how it is, I'm sure."

As if he could see right through Carine, he said: "Do the twins weird you out?"

The chubby girl almost choked. "Well, um...it's…"

He laughed slightly, offering his upperclassman an easygoing smile. "They still freak me out. I'm sure we'll get used to it sooner or later. I'm Haruhi, by the way."

He seemed glad to have another "commoner" in the club, and she smiled right along with him."It's nice to meet you too, Haruhi. Oh, and," she beckoned him closer, lowering her voice to a whisper. "What pronouns should I use for you? I don't want to call you the wrong thing or anything like that."

Haruhi blinked. Once. Twice. Then he (she?) smiled again. "Biologically, I lean towards your end of the scale, but I really don't care what people call me. I just don't think gender really matters in the long run, you know?"

The stormy-eyed girl seemed to glow. "Oh, I can tell I'll like you already!"

Haruhi chuckled. "Well, I have to go, but I'll come to see you later."

The longer-haired girl smiled at her. "Okay! Seeya, Haruhi!"

She waved the younger girl goodbye, a small smile coming to her face. She quickly retreated back into her thoughts, allowing them to bleed onto her face now that she was sure no one was watching.

Her primary concern? _Why did they choose_ me _?_

As if reading her thoughts, Ootori materialized out of the shadows beside her, making her jump and curl her hands into fists to avoid cursing. He smiled.

"Having you in the club is quite beneficial to our king, you know. Even though you are a commoner, having you as a waitress may sow some great benefits that we can reap later."

Carine bit back a retort on her lips, reminding herself that he simply just wasn't educated. And he _was_ a teenage boy. Not that boys her age were bad, per se, but their hormones made it hard to care about anything but themselves, and when you were a spoiled rich kid….well….it was bound to be even worse. She settled for a polite response, a somewhat plastic smile in place.

"Is it really? How so?"

"Well, you've shown yourself to be not without charm entirely - and the fact that you are female adds more appeal to the ladies," he pushed up his glasses. "It'll be best if they have someone to see themselves in among host club members. The quick wit and charm that you do possess can be put to fine use as well, as well as your streak of dedication to your craft and general pool of knowledge. Not to mention the resistance to flirting you exemplify. For as much as the club would not care to have the extra expense or it's reputation tarnished, having you in the background has many benefits. You do possess quite the number of useful character traits."

Carine blinked at him, watching as his journal snapped shut. Hmm. So, he acknowledged her positives, at least. Even though she was still….ah…. "second class" to him and his buddies, and his tone had an underlying cruelty to it, it was still more than she would have expected from someone like him.

"Well, thank you. Also, if it's not too much of an issue, would you mind explaining to me what's going on? I wouldn't want to be in the dark until tomorrow."

Kyoya sighed. "As our president would put it, 'Only those with excellent social standing and those from filthy rich families are lucky enough to spend time here at the elite private school Ouran Academy. The Ouran Host Club is where the handsomest boys with way too much time on their hands entertain young ladies who also have way too much time on their hands. Just think of it as Ouran Academy's elegant playground for the super rich and beautiful.'"

Carine rose an eyebrow. "I can see your reluctance in accepting me as a member, in that case. I may not know everything, but I'm a little more educated than most of my standing."

The girl clamped down on the sarcastic comments threatening to overflow, getting a stronger want to be home the more that he explained. But this was a good opportunity. This was her shot, and as Lin-Manuel Miranda once wrote: "I am not throwing away my shot."

With her sarcasm came fear. It coiled around her in waves, whispering in her ear and mind, telling her to go. Everyone here looked down on her. She was inadequate. She had no one.

No place. She wasn't good enough.

She wasn't -

"Well, you are not without your benefits, Miss Arrowsmith."

At Ootori speaking again, she was pulled out of the spiral she was quickly descending into, though she could feel her body being pulled down still. If she had spaced out, or he had noticed, he said nothing.

"Why thank you, Ootori-san. I have the feeling I've picked up enough about the types, so there's nothing to ask about, I don't think."

"Oh?" Her classmate raised an eyebrow. "Would you care to share your hypothesis?"

She looked up at him, surprised he wanted to know. Either he wanted information, he was trying to be polite...or he actually didn't think she would figure it out.

She tried to eliminate the third option. "Ah, well…..each one of you flirts with your clients in a different way. I've heard enough in the halls about the new host." At this, Carine inclined her head in Haruhi's direction, prompting her conversational partner to nod. "Their prefered style, or maybe it's something they don't even realize that they're doing, is to just talk and say the occasional thing that can be interpreted as flirting. Haruhi was also labeled as the Natural, which means that the rest of you should have types. I don't want to be a bother, so that's where I'll stop, but I think I'm right. I'm just missing the titles."

The bespeckled boy pushed up his glasses, which gave Carine a thought to latch onto, which was turned into a way to distract herself from her unsettled state. His method really was different than hers. What did that say about his personality? Well, it could be representative of how he seemed straight and to the point, or -

"Impressive analyzation." he said, smirking, "Since you worked so hard to get this far, I suppose I can lay out the finer details." Carine's thinking stopped, the little chibi versions of herself stopping what they were doing, and therefore quieting the busy office that she often envisioned her mind to be. "Your hosts are as follows: Tamaki, the 'princely type,' Honey-senpai, the 'boy lolita', Mori-senpai, the 'strong and silent type', Hikaru and Kaoru, the 'mischievous type', Haruhi, the 'natural type', and myself, the 'Cool type'."

Outwardly, Carine nodded, but inwardly? Her classmate had given her so much material to inwardly make herself laugh with, even if she would feel awful about it later.

 _Cool type? I'd call it more of a "secret serial killer that will most likely have you end up on an episode of 48 Hours type", but go off, I guess._

"Thank you, Ootori-san. It's been a pleasure speaking with you thus far-" she was abruptly cut off when he walked away from her and towards a fast-entering redheaded girl. Carine didn't like her already, attempting to pick her apart piece by piece just through a look.

She carried herself with poise and in a proper way for ladies of her status, Carine supposed, but underlying it was an air of superiority and darkness. Subconsciously, her hand had come to her chest, where one of her various necklaces typically rested.

She'd had to forgo it today because it didn't match with her outfit, and, quite frankly, Carine was afraid of having a stigma attached to her….even though she was somewhat sure that Japan was more accepting than her home country. In that respect, at least.

She placed her hand on the table, suddenly filled with a nervous energy that she couldn't explain. Well….she could.

The Arrowsmith family line was never known for a sixth sense, nor was there anything particularly supernatural about them. However, all of the women in her family (or at least her mother and her grandmother, and sometimes her father), had a very strong intuition. It wasn't a sixth sense, no, and it sounded crazy. It was just very strong and sudden feelings that she had to listen to, and a sensitivity to the energy around her. The last trait had only been particularly prominent in her sister, her mother, and herself, which was weird.

It was all weird, but it was something that happened all the same.

Carine wasn't very sure what the new girl had set off within her - though some part of her mind dryly answered that she might have just been a bitch and Carine might be overreacting - but whatever it was, it wasn't good.

She watched carefully and with bated breath as the two talked, Haruhi's eyes quickly falling from neutrality to shock to anger to sadness to understanding, with everything in between. Her body language was tense, but after a few minutes of silence, Carine noted her mouth forming a few short sentences to express what she needed to.

It was silent between the two for a moment, but the silence seemed to be broken by the girl's arm snapping out as if it were a cobra, effectively pulling Haruhi down and on top of her.

Though it was odd, and maybe not physically possible, Carine took no time to think about it and began to walk towards them, even as the girl screamed.

The transfer student was determined to help her new friend, but paused in the middle of her walking suddenly, as if she were a record that had skipped a beat. A growing fear was gnawing at her feet, forcing her to stop what she was doing. She managed to loosen her feet, but not in time.

The twins had already taken pitchers of water and dumped them on the two girls, making the redhead whine for Tamaki. Carine carefully walked to the table in the meantime, cleaning what she could without making her fingers bleed, listening and watching as carefully as she could.

The redhead quickly ran out the door, shouting about how Tamaki was an idiot. He shrugged, looking down at the other female in the room. From the back, Kyoya was announcing the end of club activities and escorting ladies out.

It was systematic, in a way, and she thought to praise him for it later before remembering that her opinion didn't matter to them and pushing things around perhaps a bit more forcefully than she should have as a result.

"Hm," Tamaki hummed, snapping her out of her thoughts, "Now how am I going to punish you? It _is_ your fault, after all…."

 _It's really not, you little…..*sigh*, go off, I guess._

"I've got it!" He suddenly transferred from rubbing his chin to pointing at the brunette. "Your quota is now one thousand!"

Haruhi jumped, seeming a little dizzy. "One….thous...and?" She squeaked, prompting a small smile to tug at Carine's lips. Was it good….? No. It was, however, extremely cute.

He offered a hand, pulling his fellow host to her feet. "Come on. I have high expectations for you, my little rookie."

Haruhi only seemed to further deflate, looking to her commoner friend, who seemed to shrug, as if to say, " _These damn rich people, huh?"_

Carine was quickly taken away in her quest for a broom and garbage can, though, and Haruhi was alone again. Kyoya emerged from a side room, extending a bag to her. "This is the only spare uniform. Sorry, but it's better than a wet one, right?"

Haruhi accepted the bag, peeking inside and nodding. The yellow dress wasn't flattering, but it would do. "Thanks a lot, you guys, I'm going to go change."

When one of the girls left to the changing room, the other seemed to appear, not saying a work other than getting to work. It was only when she looked up at the hosts that she noted everyone watching her put everything in order.

"Is there something on my face?" She asked, far too emotionally exhausted to pretend any more.

"Other than your love for the host club, I don't see anything else," Tamaki remarked, causing her to shut her eyes and shake her head slightly, moving on with her work.

"Right. Any other reason why you all are looking at me? It's not like I'm the Mona Lisa or something."

Ootori was the first to turn away from her, smirking. "We were simply trying to place you in the starting position."

Yep, the crazy train had officially left her behind about two stops ago. Biting down the urge to make a dirty joke, she simply went back to what she was doing. "Pardon me?"

The smallest host giggled, latching onto her waist. The short girl stumbled for a moment, but set her things down and let him tug her along, all the way back to the front of the changing rooms. "It means you're one of us, Smithy-chan!"

Oh. Well, didn't she feel stupid now?

"We expect to see you after school concludes tomorrow afternoon so you can start your trial period!" The twins chimed, saluting her. She nodded, a grateful smile on her face.

 _It's almost like I'm a medieval peasant that's been brought to work at the castle. Oh, thank you, my lord. I'll be sure to do that. Allow me to kneel before your throne of money and lies and be grateful that I've been brought to serve you._

"Thank you for this opportunity."

All of the boys nodded at her and then went to chat amongst themselves. She wasn't exactly sure who gave Tamaki the bright idea of going to get Haruhi more towels, but he was off to get some from their storage.

What kind of school just had towels lying around for everyday use?

While thinking to herself, she stood beside her classmate, somewhat more at ease with her classmate. He didn't regard her or acknowledge her at all, only continuing to write in his notebook.

Soon enough, Tamaki was back with the towels. He stepped toward the curtain, calling out to her. "Haruhi, here you go. I brought you some towels."

Too late, Carine realized that he was pulling back the curtain. Upon seeing her undershirt (which did a nice job of making her seem even _more_ flat-chested), he dropped the curtain and stepped back as if he were a robot.

After a few moments, Haruhi emerged, adjusting her bow. Everything was silent for a minute, and if she were looking hard enough, the girl could see the gears in her classmate's head turning. Finally, he broke the silence. "Haruhi?"

"Yeah?"

"So….you're a girl?" He said, still obviously confused. Well...at least he was asking for an identity.

"Biologically speaking, yeah. Listen, senpai, I don't care if you guys recognize me as a boy or a girl. In my opinion, it's more important for a person to be recognized for who they are rather than what sex they are." Haruhi shrugged, looking to the other female. Carine gave her a thumbs-up in solidarity.

"Well isn't this an interesting development." Kyoya deadpanned, not even looking up.

"Oh, yeah." The twins chimed.

"What a wonder it is…" Carine chipped in, smiling only a little.

Haruhi squirmed a little, sighing. "Uh, you know….I have to say, senpai, you were pretty cool earlier."

This comment and her ensuing smile caused Tamaki to cover his mouth, flushing red all over. If she weren't so drained, the transfer might have laughed.

"Now I could be wrong, but I think we may be witnessing the beginnings of love here," Kyoya said from beside her. This actually did make her laugh, surprised that he had a sense of humor to begin with.

"You know…" Haruhi started, seeming to think some more, "Being a host and being fussed over by a bunch of girls might not be that bad. I wonder how I'll pull it off, though…."

She thought about it for a minute, before her eyes twinkled with humor and she finished the thought. "I've got it! I'll just call everyone 'dude' and 'bro' from now on."

This wrenched a laugh from not only herself but her companions as well.

As she watched everyone pack up and get ready to go, Carine was glad to go home, but she had a thought.

It wasn't likely, but….maybe she'd like being in the host club. Maybe she'd make new friends.

Maybe….just maybe.

* * *

 **This chapter is a lot longer than the previous one, and takes a lot of steps forward with the plot. It's not always going to be this fast paced, but it was sped up a little. For the sake of the timeline, I wanted Carine to be as integrated as possible with the host club, and I wanted to address what would have been my main concern as a reader: Why her? What makes her so special?**

 **Hopefully I can continue to elaborate.**

 **Also, if you haven't noticed, the chapters will alternate. The even numbered chapters will be actual episodes, but the odd-numbered chapters will be short chapters to help further Carine's development or the development of the host club and their dynamic between episode chapters.**

 **Thank you to the people who left feedback and kudos, it means a lot to me! Hopefully I can update soon!**

 **Thanks for reading!**


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